Draw block for wire drawing and packaging machines



Dec. 19, 1961 J. c. BlTTMAN 3,013,741

DRAW BLOCK FOR WIRE DRAWING AND PACKAGING MACHINES Filed July 27, 1959FIG. I

g A 43 U JNVENTOR.

JESS C. BITTMAN BY W, via/4g, 8.19

ATTORNEYS 3,013,741 DRAW BLQQK FOR WIRE DRAWING AND PAQKAGING MACHINESJess *J. Bittrnan, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, assignor to The VaughnMachinery Company, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio,

a corporation of Uhio Filed July 27, 1959, Ser. No. 829,605 5 Claims.(Cl. 242-452) The present invention relates generally as indicated to adraw block for wire drawing and packaging machines and more particularlyto a draw block assembly which may be readily adjusted to effect a widerange of variation in the wire convolution diameters in accordance withthe size of the wire.

in equipment of this nature, it is one common practice to provide apower-driven draw block coaxially above a rotating wire-receiving druminto which the convolutions of wire from the block descend by gravity toform a coil or package of wire in the drum. Another expedient known inthe art is the so-called dead block-dead coil packaging technique inwhich a flyer is rotated about a stationary draw block to wrap the wirearound the block and to permit unwrapping of the convolutions of thewire into a stationary wire-receiving drum or the like disposed beneaththe stationary block.

-in the interest of maximum productivity of such machines, it is desiredto perform the drawing and packaging operations while the wire istravelling at high speed. Such wire speeds are different for difierentsizes and materials of the wire, and therefore it has been proposedheretofore in the live block-live coil machines to provide variablespeed drives for the block and drum support and to substitute blocks ofdifferent diameters. For instance, for 17 and finer gauges of wire, itis customary to use a lock of about 16" diameter, for 16 to 12 gauge ablock of 22 to 26" diameter, for 14 to 8 gauge a block of about 26"diameter, for 8 to 4 gauge a block of about 30" diameter, etc.Similarly, in the case of dead block-dead coil machines, it has beenproposed to provide viariable speed drives for the flyers and again tosubstitute blocks of different diameters according to the wire size.Changing of blocks is a time-consuming operation and results in loss ofproduction of the machine.

Accordingly, it is one principal object of this invention to provide amachine of the character indicated which has a draw block assembly soconstructed and arranged that the active block diameter may be easilyand quickly changed without the time-consuming operation of removing oneblock from the machine and substituting another one therefor.

It is another object of this invention to provide a draw block assemblywhich comprises a nested series of draw biocks of different diameterseach having threaded engagement with a supporting shaft therefor,whereby the blocks of diameter larger than the one which it is desiredto use may be easily and quickly turned on the supporting shaft toout-of-the-way positions exposing the periphcry of the desired block.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent as the following description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention,then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described andparticularly pointed out in the claims, the following description andannexed drawing setting forth in detail a certain illustrativeembodiment of the invention, this being indicative, however, of but oneof the various ways in which the principle of the invention may beemployed.

in said annexed drawing:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary cross-section view, partly in tes atent3,@l3,74l Patented Dec. 19, 1961 elevation taken in a vertical planethrough the axis of the draw block assembly constituting the presentinven tion; and

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view as viewed along the line 22, FIG.1.

By way of illustrative example, the wire drawing and Swivelly mounted tothe lower end of the shaft 3, as on the double row antifriction bearing5, is a carrier 6 for the sheave 7 over which the wire W passes to thesheave 8 that is journalled on the depending shaft 10 of the flyerassembly 12.-

The flyer assembly 12 has its upwardly extending hub portion 14supported for rotation about the axis of the tubular shaft 3 by theantifriction bearings 15, and secured to the hub portion 14 is a wormwheel 16 adapted to be driven by the worm 17, the worm 17, in turn,being driven as by an electric drive motor or the like, not shown.

The draw block assembly is herein shown, comprises a series of four drawblocks 19, 20, 21, and 22 of, for example, 16'', 22", 26" and 30diameter, nested within one another with their respective beveledshoulders 23, 24, 25', 26 lying in a plane common to a plane passingthrough the median trans-axial plane of the sheave 8. The smallest drawblock 19 has a hub 27 which is engaged between the bearing 5 for theswivel sheave 7 and a shoulder 28 formed adjacent the lower end of thetubu- Q lar shaft 23. The other three draw blocks 20, 21 and 22 havehubs 29, 3% and 31 in threaded engagement with the tubular shaft 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, the largest draw block 22 is in operating position,and should it be desired to use the second largest draw block 21, allthat the operator of the machine would have to do is to turn the largestdraw block 22 on the shaft 3 until its hub 31 engages the shoulder 32 ofthe tubular shaft 3. Thus, the skirt of the draw block 22 will beaxially offset above the skirt of the second largest draw block 21.Similarly, if it is desired to use the third largest draw block 20, thedraw block 21 is screwed upwardly until it firmly engages the largestdraw block 22 thereby exposing the peripheral skirt of said thirdlargest draw block 20. Finally, if it is desired to use the smallestdraw block 19, the third largest draw block 20 is screwed upwardly tightagainst the bottom of the second largest draw block 21.

Thus, the diameter of the wire convolutions according to wire size maybe easily and quickly changed through four steps, viz. 16", 22", 26", or30 as required.

Preferably, the flyer 12 will be driven in a clockwise direction, asviewed in FIG. 2, when the tubular shaft 3 has right-hand threads andthus, the tension in the wire W, when it is being wrapped around any oneof the draw blocks 2t), 21, or 22, does not tend to screw the sameupwardly, but instead tends to maintain the draw block in use in itslowered and tightened position with the beveled shoulder thereof in thesame plane as the median plane of the sheave 9.

The flyer assembly 12 may be provided with a wire drawing die and/orwith a casting device (wire setting rolls) as disclosed, for example, inthe copending application of M. A. Nye et 211., Serial No. 701,000,filed December 6, 1957, now Patent No. 2,927,744.

The flyer assembly 12 also has adjustably mounted thereon a freelyrunning roll 35 supported as by the antifriction bearings 36 on avertical shaft 37 which is mounted at the end of an arm 38 extendingradially from another vertical shaft 39, the latter, in turn, beingrotatable on the fiyer base 40 and having a crank arm 41 provided with aswivel nut 42 in threaded engagement with the adjusting screw 43 whichis axially fixed but rotatable on the swivel post 45. It can be seenthat by turning the adjusting screw 43, the periphery of the roll 35 maybe positioned adjacent the periphery of any one of the four draw blocks19, 2t), 21, or 22 so as to hold the convolutions of the wire W againstthe selected draw block during the rotation of the fiyer assembly 12. Ofcourse, as the convolutions are forced upwardly due to the upward forcecomponent at the beveled shoulder 23, 24, 25, or 26, the top convolutionwill be free to descend from the draw block into a suitable wirereceiving drum or the like beneath the draw block assembly 18. Theleading end of the top convolution may be threaded between the peripheryof the draw block in use and the periphery of the guide roll 46 so thatthe wire W will engage in the peripheral groove of the guide roll 46 andthus be fed down continuously as the tlyer assembly 12 rotates.

It is to be understood that the present invention not only has utilitywith a vertical draw block assembly, as herein shown, but can be usedalso with a horizontal draw block machine. Although the present machineis of the dead block-dead coil type, the nesting draw blocks 19, 2G, 21,and 22 may be used in a live block-live coil type of machine. In eitherevent, it is possible with the present invention to quickly and easilychange the wire convolution diameter according to wire size without thetime-consuming task of removing one block from the machine and ofinstalling another block of difierent diameter.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invention may be employed,change being made as regards the details described, provided thefeatures stated in any of the following claims, or the equivalent ofsuch, be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

1. A takeup block for wire packaging machines comprising a supportingshaft; a first block mounted on said shaft and having a peripheralportion around which wire is adapted to be wrapped to form convolutions;and a second block having a peripheral skirt portion which is concentricwith, and of larger diameter than, the peripheral portion of said firstblock; said second block being axially movably mounted on said shaftfrom a position whereat said portions are axially ofiset for wrapping orwire around said first block to a position whereat the peripheral skirtportion of said second block surrounds the peripheral portion of saidfirst block for wrapping of wire around said second block, said firstblocl; engaging said second block to locate the peripheral portion ofsaid second block in the same plane as the peripheral portion of saidfirst block.

2. The takeup block of claim 1 wherein said second block and shaft havescrew threaded engagement with each other whereby said second block maybe moved axially as aforesaid by rotating said second block relative tosaid shaft.

3. A takeup block for wire packaging machines comprising a supportingshaft; and a series of blocks mounted on said shaft in nested,concentric relation with the pe ripheral portions thereof, around whichwire is adapted to be wrapped, lying in substantially a common plane;said blocks, except the one of smallest diameter, being axially movablymounted on said shaft to axially offset relation with respect to suchplane whereby wire may be thus wrapped on the peripheral portion of anyselected one of said series of blocks, said smallest diameter block andsuccessively larger blocks engaging one another to locate the peripheralportion of the selected block in such common plane.

4. The takeup block of claim 3 wherein said axially movable blocks havescrew threaded engagement with said shaft to facilitate such axialmovement thereof to offset position.

5. The takeup block of claim 4 wherein power drive means are provided toeffect such wrapping of wire around a selected block, said wrappingbeing done by said power means in a direction tending to rotate theselected block into tighter engagement with the block therewithin.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

